What's happening here in the Humble Bungalow...saying thank you to Jamie Cat Callan

Cold weather has been hanging around here in Victoria for the past few weeks with no signs of warming up. Our zero and minus 4 degree days make for a chilly outing if one is not adequately dressed. This morning, for example, Victorians living on the west shore awoke to a burst water main that closed the Trans Canada Highway into town! The traffic was snarled for hours and now only one lane is open.

Hat, gloves, scarf, warm down coat over top of layers of tops and socks have been necessary when venturing out of the house...
imagine the "Michelin Man" puffy coat
worn with a woolly hat that covers my ears,
a scarf
with just my eyes peeking out
and you get the picture...
BRRR
the usual 60 minute walks are just not happening.
(I may need to resort to mall walking!)

I finally broke down and purchased a heavier pair of tights so that I could wear my skirts and dresses with my Chelsea boots.
I have not worn heavy tights since I retired from the school district and I was surprised when I looked for some...the prices are much higher than I remember.
As part of my job I was required to do outdoor supervision at recess and lunch and because I feel the cold I dressed like I was going to the North Pole...
Comfort wins.

OOTD...

Grey Boiled wool skirt

wool, rayon and spandex tights

Chelsea boots

grey top

(not visible)

It is a wee bit of a risk posting a picture

 I am such rubbish at taking selfies.

 BTW

still patiently waiting for my hair to turn completely grey...

in the meantime I have embraced grey clothing with a pop of colour.

This is what I think of now as

 "Grammy Style"

plus

I love knitting, cooking and taking care of the wee ones...

officially and unabashedly grandmotherly!

Sitting in The Humble Bungalow Living Room

gazing into the twinkle lights

sipping a cafe creme

is where I start my day.

Currently reading The Midwife of Hope River by Patricia Harman 

I loved her other novels.

Patricia is a very gifted writer..

 she has a new one coming out in January

"Runaway Midwife"

already reserved at the library.

I have read oodles and oodles of books over the years

and I have so much respect for writers 

and 

their discipline to their craft.

I regularly consider, and wonder, if I could ever write a book.

Recently on Facebook

Jamie Cat Callan 

hosted a writing contest 

the winner would receive

a copy of her

 "Writer's Tool Box" 

check this out!

Thank you Jamie

(I was fortunate in winning one of her Tool Kits)

After reading all of Jamie's books

I met her on her Ooh La La tour in Paris...

Jamie is energetic

enthusiastic

loves life

is fun to be around

she is

  a totally delightful woman

her 

"joie de vivre" is positively contagious.

Jamie is currently working on a new book...

which I am so looking forward to reading it when it comes out next year.

Chester demands my attention when I sit...

often he pushes my book away before settling into my lap for a cuddle.

OOTD

party version

Sitting in the peace and quiet

dreams are formed

hopes

wishes

destinations farther than my front garden

a leap of faith

who knows what the future will bring?

Thank you Jamie

You continue to inspire me everyday.

I will always remember my trip to Paris.

If it were not for Jamie

 I am not sure that I would have ever realized my dream.

So many thoughts bubble up 

so many of those feelings that lay dormant 

before I embarked on that amazing trans formative journey.

In gratitude...

Happy Holidays and Seasons Greetings!

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Faux tree and a recipe...

Have I mentioned how our cats dictate how we live our life here in our Humble Bungalow? They do.
How they are mischievous and how every year they climb our live Christmas tree and break our vintage baubles? They do.

We have resorted to closing the doors and keeping them out of the living room unless we are there ourselves to shoo them away but I have decided that this is far too stressful...
and so
we have purchased a faux tree to keep the peace and serenity
that we far prefer to savour.

Looks ok

BUT

 it has no fresh fir scent...

no needles to vacuum up...

and the cats...

WELL

they are not at ALL interested in it

So I can say for now, 

we can relax...

PHEW!

There are so many things to do during this festive season.

Baking

Shopping

Entertaining

Being Entertained

Dressing up

Decorating

Christmas events

Writing Letters

Sending Cards

If we opt out of some of these it is not the end of the world.

I like to pace myself and really enjoy the seasonal festivities.

We would be amiss if we did not acknowledge and 

recognize  the people who help and work for and with us over the past year.

MR. HB's  firm hosted a party...

I wore a simple black dress

mesh tights

Chelsea boots

 accessorized with a diamond necklace, studs and my diamond heart bracelet.

Festive ties are a favourite of MR. HB.

He is not a fan of the tacky Christmas Sweaters.

He wore the tie on the left...with a grey shirt and black dress pants.

Very smart indeed.

Here is my diamond heart bracelet.

I am collecting diamond hearts to create a modern day "family heirloom" to pass onto one of my grandchildren. 

We have three little ones so far and so I am planning ahead.

I want to leave them with something to remember me by...
besides my cookies, story reading and home cooked meals.

Blurry image but you get the sparkly idea...

Ojibwa duck decoys, a dome with an allium inside and some copper lights...

Chester says hello from under the tree...

I bought a big bag of tomatoes from the market on sale today.

Incredibly cheap and so fresh!

So I pulled out my Soup Sisters Cook book and looked up the Heirloom tomato soup recipe...

Roast halved tomatoes sprinkled with garlic cloves, diced onions and olive oil

400 degrees for 45 minutes.

Pop into a pot and use the immersion blender to mix it into a pulp.

Add oregano, basil leaves, salt, pepper to taste.

Then add 2 cups of veggie stock and simmer for 30 minutes.

Ladle into a bowl and enjoy!

Its been a busy weekend...

I have been up late two nights in a row.

Feeling a bit like I could benefit from an early night.

Will try and catch a few extra ZZZZ'S

Hope your weekend was fun.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Weekend snippets and a cookie recipe...

How was your weekend?
Ours was busy and we had the opportunity to go shopping, we enjoyed lunch and brunch out at two of our favourite spots, there was time for my knitting projects, then some baking and Mr. HB mowed the lawn as we heard that snow was in the forecast.

We picked up the newlyweds at the airport.
It feels so good having them back in town
and we look forward to spending Christmas together.

Their honeymoon was spent touring NZ and Australia where Nick grew up.
They had a wonderful time.
Except for the earthquake in Wellington, which sounds like a stressful experience and now that we have more details we can understand better what they went through.

Saturday we wandered through the shops downtown.
I particularly like seeing the shop windows all decked out for the festive season...

This cute little jacket is made for a toddler.

The Tapas Bar in Trounce Alley

where we ate a yummy lunch.

The Beehive Wool shop windows

I purchased more yarn so I could knit up some gifts.

Sunday brunch at 

The Beach House restaurant, 

the seas were calm and the skies were blue.

I love this wee table accent...so simple and festive.

Delicious food and a fabulous view made for a wonderful start to the day.

Avocado on toast with poached eggs and pea shoots.

Speaking of food...

I discovered this delicious cookie recipe on line.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/218878/citrus-shortbread-cookies

The cookies are tasty and you can make the dough one day pop it in the fridge and bake it when you have time.
That works well for those of us who like to pace ourselves
especially important at this time of year!

The Kitchen Aid does most of the work.

I will bake these today.

I am also sending Carol a gift as a token of her kindness.

Carol is giving the cookbook she won in the giveaway to Nadya 

who I hope will read this and send me her address

(bungalowhostess@gmail.com)

The neighbours' cat has settled down for a nap on our front porch in the sunshine.

I must get that oven heated up and bake those cookies so I will close for now...

Hope that you have a wonderful week.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Grace in action...hope you are reading this Nadya!

Welcome to The Humble Bungalow
our neighbourhood is getting dressed up for the holidays.

Our bungalow Christmas lights are all white.

The neighbours in our area like to decorate with vibrant colours...

its fun to wander around the neighbourhood at night and see the festive accents.

This is a newer home on our street.

It has grey shingles and white trim and I love the garden with the box hedging.

I had not planned to write so soon after my Friday post 

but I received the most gracious email from Carol 

who was the recipient of the Weight Watchers Slow Cooker cookbook. 

"I have not been able to get Nadya's entry out of my mind since I read it.

Perhaps I remember being so tired with a toddler (or two) to care for.

Perhaps it is because it is my son's goal to become a political science professor.

I suspect she would use the cookbook far more often than I."

~ Carol Woodard ~

Carol you are a gracious woman and your gesture is so very kind.

I hope that Nadya reads this and sends her mailing address so that I can forward the cookbook to her asap.

Nadya my email address is bungalowhostess@gmail.com

Carol please email me your mailing address as I want to send you something too!

Seasons Greetings!

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Friday thoughts...

In response to a recent comment
I wrote this from the heart
and thought it might be a focus for Friday
as we approach the festive season...
which for many,
can be fraught with emotion.

Gate of Harmonious Interest in Victoria's Chinatown

"it is sad to think that people want to inflict their gloom on others who embrace the good things in life and seek out beauty and prefer to be joyful. We all experience dark days and there are many who suffer from depression and chronic pain which I can understand as I have been there and have come out of the bouts with an invigorated and focused approach to embrace the little things in life that make me happy. My wish is that we work at finding solutions and tools that make our way through life a richer and more rewarding journey."

Juan de Fuca Strait

as viewed from King George Terrace

"after the storm"

The skies reminded me of a Tony Onley watercolour.

I love looking at the holiday lights as they transport me back to my childhood.

Mother and Father would let us stay up late, 

bundle us up in our pajamas and robes 

drive us around town looking at many of the homes with the twinkling lights.

Some had lawn ornaments and several had mechanized reindeer with Santa guiding the sleigh.

Our family fell into what we might consider as the middle class.

We had a home in a nice neighbourhood but we did not have a lot of money.

Gifts at Christmas were often second hand...

Mother was an excellent seamstress and she made our velvet Xmas dresses.

She sewed one for herself and with the leftover fabric she made my sister and I matching dresses.

Our pictures every year show 3 of us in matching coloured velvet frocks!

Father was very handy and he could fix things.

I remember getting a pink radio!

It was a vintage (even by1960's standard) radio that he refurbished and painted pink just for me...

I'd say that was a labour of love.

One year I got a bike...

a Raleigh, that he completely rebuilt with new tires and a fresh coat of paint.

We also got things that we "needed" like socks and underwear.

Books and a couple of small toys.

My Father was in the Fraternal Order of the Elks and they had a Christmas Party for the families every Christmas and that is where we got a super duper gift!

I remember getting a Barbie, a Midge and Skipper dolls.

The gifts were a real treat.

My Father grew up during the Depression and I think it had a huge impact on how he viewed money.

He scrimped and saved to put money away in the bank.

His family struggled to put food on the table and I heard a story once that they sold their claw foot tub in order to pay for something!

Can you imagine?

My thoughts are rather discombobulated 

but what I am trying to say is that life is a tapestry of events 

sewn together rather haphazardly

what we choose to do with these events 

has a huge impact on who we are

how we are seen by others

and what we bring to the table.

Life has struggles and challenges

and

after all is said and done...

We all have choices...

we can wallow

feel sorry for ourselves

OR

take action

work hard to change things

adopt the attitude of gratitude

 I choose gratitude and when I do,

 happiness follows...

If you know of someone who could use a little cheer today

please take it upon yourself to lend a hand.

Carol Woodard the slow cooker cookbook is yours!

please email me your address at bungalowhostess@gmail.com

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~